Police: 9 Truckee juveniles arrested, suspected in graffiti ring

Related Media

TRUCKEE, Calif. — Authorities believe they’ve made a significant dent into a town graffiti ring after nine juveniles were arrested this week on suspicion of multiple tagging crimes.

Truckee Police Department detectives concluded a 6-week long investigation last Thursday. This week, officers served a pair of search warrants that led to the arrests.

All nine arrested were Truckee males, between ages 14 and 17, said TPD Capt. Rob Leftwich, who add that additional suspects are being looked at.

“We take these cases very seriously and do not view them as petty crimes,” he said. “Truckee is one of those communities where defacing property in any way will get our full attention.”

Most of the graffiti was identified as tagging marks that were “moniker-related, and not gang-related,” Leftwich said.

“The difference is that with (moniker tagging), the person views himself as an artist, and wants to make his mark with nicknames, logos, things like that,” Leftwich said. “The other is more gang-related, territorial, to put intimidating marks on walls. Obviously, we have a lot less of that in Truckee.”

Most of the crimes occurred along the backside of Commercial Row in downtown and at the Truckee River Regional Park, he said. Several Dumpsters in town also were hit.

It is a crime to supply a juvenile with spray paint, and it is a crime for a juvenile to possess spray paint, according to police.

“Graffiti costs the taxpayers of the town of Truckee thousands of dollars annually to clean up,” the department said in a statement.

Anyone with information about graffiti crimes is encouraged to contact TPD at 530-550-2323.